O’NEILL, NE — Thirteen high school teams from across the region came together for an exciting day of competition at the 64th Annual O’Neill Track Invitational. The event showcased fierce athleticism, standout performances, and remarkable team spirit.
The O’Neill Girls Team earned an impressive 4th place, while the O’Neill Boys Team secured 5th place, proving their strength across multiple events.
A highlight of the meet came from the Girls 4×800-meter relay team, which took 1st place with a powerful performance by Taya Dickau, Reagan Kaufman, Hannah Hilker, and Mollie Corkle. The momentum continued in the Girls 4×400-meter relay, where Dickau, Tenzlie Sorensen, Hilker, and Corkle pushed through for 4th place.
On the boys’ side, the 4×100-meter relay team of Porter Mathews, Ryker Sudbeck, Ian Yates, and Maguire Heiss finished 4th, and the 4×400-meter relay team of Colten Shoemaker, Nate Brown, Trevor Alder, and Paul Fonseca clinched 3rd.
In the sprints, Maddie Heiss had a strong showing with 4th place finishes in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes, while Porter Mathews matched her 200m performance with a 4th place finish in the boys’ division. Trevor Alder stood out in the 400-meter dash, earning runner-up honors, and added a 6th place finish in the 800-meter run.
Field events brought additional medals: Mariah Kallhoff took 3rd in shot put and was runner-up in discus. Grady Welke soared to 2nd in the boys’ pole vault, with Brooklynn Cahoy matching that with a 2nd place finish in the girls’ pole vault.
In the jumps, Maddie Heiss landed 3rd in the long jump, and Porter Mathews mirrored that in the boys’ division. Tenzlie Sorensen leapt to 3rd in the girls’ triple jump, rounding out a strong overall meet for the Eagles.
The 64th O’Neill Invitational proved once again to be a cornerstone event of the track season, filled with strong performances and promising momentum as the athletes head into the latter part of the season.
Story by Cole Hilker
